5 mana for a 5/5 is pedestrian, and I'm not a fan of the RNG in getting both a random minion from your opponent AND having to wait till Sylvanas gets killed before it triggers. The board might have changed a lot in that time compared to when you played the card. This gap in between the 2 makes the card less effective I feel, leaving your opponent open to take measures. For a legendary card I find it somewhat meh. I'm open to suggestions on how to make good use of these cards though.

5 mana for a 5/5 is pedestrian, and I'm not a fan of the RNG in getting both a random minion from your opponent AND having to wait till Sylvanas gets killed before it triggers. The board might have changed a lot in that time compared to when you played the card. This gap in between the 2 makes the card less effective I feel, leaving your opponent open to take measures. For a legendary card I find it somewhat meh. I'm open to suggestions on how to make good use of these cards though.

i don't really see a way TO make her useful as she stands, there are a few more 5 mana cards which are non-legendary that would be way less RNG and just all around better to take.

For example: Less health/attack by one, but it summons a 2/2 which can give more utility than RNG.

i don't really see a way TO make her useful as she stands, there are a few more 5 mana cards which are non-legendary that would be way less RNG and just all around better to take.

For example: Less health/attack by one, but it summons a 2/2 which can give more utility than RNG.

Well I think Blizzard will argue that the main attraction of Sylvanas is in that you take away a minion from your opponent. But looking at when you can start playing Sylvanas (5 mana cost) there's not going to be the 7-9 mana whoppers that you hope to get. So Sylvanas will get you either some 5-6 mana minions at best, but possibly some low mana fodder. Taking away a 3/3 from your opponent is pretty meh.

But then look at the Cairne Bloodhoof card. Slightly higher cost (6 mana) and slightly lower attack ( it's a 4/5) BUT when your opponent kills it, you have a guaranteed 4/5 Baine Bloodhoof to replace him. So for 1 mana less, you get 1 attack more, but also the RNG that you most likely won't get another 4/5 out of it.

I'd take Cairne over Sylvanas any day, to be honest.

EDIT: Oh, and it just occured to me that the minions you take over from your opponent have a high chance to allready be damaged in some way, so that's another knock on the Sylvanas card.

yeah there are too many other choices which just plain out-class Sylvanas as she stands.

The ONLY possible way i can see her being useful (and that is a stretch) is against a Druid rush deck, they get to turn 5 and have 8 mana from Wild Growth/Innervates and then play something huge, but even then there is so much RNG involved because they will probably throw out a smaller minion, or silence you or something to stop that effect triggering.

Totally agree about Cairne, pretty amazing card for what he does IMO. I thought the original bonus she gave looked a lot more interesting though (Can only link to site, not card)

It would be a good counter for a deck structured around high hitting cards, can't just ignore it as it does 5 damage per turn. You could force the deathrattle by making it attack something stronger whereas potentially destroying two enemy minions for the cost of one. You can use a minion ability or some spell to give it taunt. The are alot of possibilities to make the card beneficial. Sure when compareing it to something like silver knight hand, its going to appear lackluster. It requires a special niche which i like that they are giving more cards that arn't just run of the mill throw it down without a second thought.

If your opponent only has 1 minion on their side of the field, you are guaranteed to remove it from their possession via killing it or taking it over.

I don't really get Sylvanas' flavor though. She dies, you get an opponent's creature.

She's a banshee. Banshees possess their enemies. The reason she has a body, I believe, was because she possessed her own dead corpse, but there's nothing that says she can leave it again to possess something else.